"Growing Kindness" depicts how I imagine the world would be if humans and animals work together in harmony for communities to thrive.
In this piece, Baybayin, a pre-colonial writing system in the Philippines, is embedded as a tribute to Laon, an ancient deity in my home province, Panay (Visayas). Laon was worshipped as the supreme goddess and creator, as well as, the goddess of agriculture and harvest. She resided in Mount Kanlaon. In other Visayan languages, her name also means "aged crops or grain". Laon, for me, plays a special role in this piece as a symbol for abundance and compassion for all beings.
Moreover, I also consider this piece as both a personal and political undertaking. It is a look-back to my roots growing up in a farm where I had witnessed, first-hand, the plight of rice farmers and the imbalance in the human-animal dynamics incited by the powerplay between big corporations and the agribusiness industry. Despite the abundance of natural resources in the Philippines, our farmers struggle because of business monopolies and economic power perpetuated by the wealthy few. This dynamics dictates the livelihood of farmers and their families and forces them to resort to drastic measures in order to survive, leaving a little room for more ethical and environmentally sustainable alternatives.
I believe that there's a greater chance for humans and animals to live in harmony in the absence of greed, and this piece is how I envisioned life would have been should compassion and generosity rule the world.
Growing Kindness
8 x 8 inches
20.32 x 20.32 cm
Digital Painting
